Dec 18 Day 19: Netzach, Israel - Alon Kopelowitz

We woke up this morning to yet another loud, obnoxious wake up call at the Montifioure Hotel, in the heart of Jerusalem. Yet, despite the shrill ring of this call our spirits were not dampened. After a quick breakfast and a meaningful davening, which included a Torah reading by our very own Kovi Smith, the boys and girls were split and we officially started our day.

The boys made their way to Yad Sarah, an institute which assists people who need medical equipment by lending it to them at no cost. We watched a quick video about how the institute began and how it works, before we started the official tour. We walked around the different parts of the building, during which we were told some very interesting facts about the organisation. These facts included: - there are about 6000 volunteers doing things from engineering to nursing to driving around those in need. - they are a non-for-profit organisation and thus fully rely on donations. - the institute started off in an apartment in Jerusalem and is now assisting 500,000 people yearly.We finished off by making crutches which people will be able to use, but hopefully won’t need to.

We then went to a Yeshiva in the Old City called Orayta. We had a shiur with Rav Aaron about ones self, which involved looking into the me, the self and the I. He explained that the latter represent your soul and your neshama and that is what one should be working on rather than the me (which represents your physical appearance and what the rabbi referred to as the character you are playing). He concluded by saying that the I is G-d, and saying that the self is a "ray of sun" which stems from the I. Then after a quick lunch break we headed back for more learning this time with Rav Binny. We spoke about the importance of Teffilah and why we should turn it into an instinct.

Then we had a bit of free time in the old city to buy some stuff; most people used this time to buy their gifts for mysterious Maccabis, similar to secret Santa.

We moved on and went to the Beit Halochem centre in Jerusalem where we met up with the girls. After learning about the ZDVO and the stories of those in the centre we took part in some activities that one would participate in whilst there. These activities included wheelchair basketball, table tennis and shooting. All actives were really fun and put us into the shoes of those who take part in activities at the centre.

We then went to Ramat Rachel and had a Hanukkah party where we ate doughnuts and watched the mads embarrass themselves. It was a nice way to end a very enjoyable day and put us all in high spirits for our free weekend.